Lumber-sorter



(No Model.)

J. A. BEL. LUMBER 501113311.

No. 451,205. Patented Apr. 28,1891.

mmmbo a UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN A. BEL, OF LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA.

LUMBER-SORTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 451,205, dated April 28, 1891.

Application filed August 30, 1890. Serial No. 363,500. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN A. BEL, residing at Lake Charles, in the parish of Caleasieu and State of Louisiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lumber- Sorters, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to lumber-Sorters or conveying-skids.

The object of the invention is to produce a lumber-sorter on which the lumber may be conveniently placed, and from which the lumher will be conveyed in assorted lots by grav- 1ty to wagons or dollies and loaded thereon.

Figure 1 is a plan of the lumber-sorter, showing skids with pieces of lumber thereon. Fig. 2 is a section on line y y of same, showing also wagons or cars onto which the lumher is loaded.

A indicates the track of a conveyor, along which lumberis fed in any suitable and usual way, as by rollers B, which are driven by drive-chain a, passing around pulleys b, at tached to the axles of the rollers.

C is a foot-board alongside the conveyer, on which board the operator or operators stand. Rows of upright posts H H,I I, and L L, as many in number as may be desirable, are arranged near the foot-board C. These posts are as far apart in the row as may be desirable, say about eight feet. Each post has an inclined skid attached and extending nearly to the foot-board O at the upper end. Thus the skids 1 on the posts H extend nearly to the board 0 on one side, and from thence incline downward beyond the posts. The row of posts marked I is far enough from posts II to permit the passage of a wagon or dolly K between. Posts I bear inclined skids 2 at a different plane from skids 1, and above the same. The skids 2do not extend so near the foot-board as do the skids 1. The skids 3 are attached to posts L in the same manner as skids 2 to posts I, and are still a little higher than skids 2 at their inner ends.

The foot-board C may have guide-wings IV to guide lumber to the nearest dolly.

It will be understood that as many rows of posts and skids may be arranged as is found convenient. As will be seen in the plan view, the skids are at regular distances apart. The distance between skids in the same series may serve as an index to the length of the boards or other pieces of lumber to be fed down the skids.

Chutes or inclined tables which inclose the entire board or feed it lengthwise would not be the equivalents of the skids, because in feeding the board lengthwise the chute would not serve as an index of the length. By the use of skids pieces of lumber of less length than the distance between the skids will drop through, which would not be the case if chutes with closed bottoms were employed.

Lumber E is brought on the conveyor opposite the assorting-skids. The operator or operators then lift the lumber from the conveyer and drop it onto the skids which should receive it, the assortment being made according to length or quality, or it may be graded by the operator by any system. After it is placed onthe skids the lumber generally requires no further attention, as it will move down the skids by gravity and fall into the proper pile or into the appropriate wagon or dolly.

The ends of the series 1 of skids preferably extend nearer the foot-board C than do series 2. In loading it is more convenient to lift the heavy lumber onto the nearest series of skids.

As will be seen by the drawings, all the skids of series 1 are of practically the same length and lie in the same inclined plane. So the skids of series 2 are of uniform length and lie in the same plane, but this series 2 is of a different length and lies in a different plane from the series 1. The same is true of the series 3, and thesame idea may be carried as far as found advisable.

What I claim is- 1. A lumber assorter consisting, essentially, of a plurality of supports having passages therebetween, and separate series of fixed inclined skids on said supports, the skids of a series being separated by open spaces.

and being practically of uniform length and different series projecting to different distances from the foot-board, all substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my sign atn re in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN A. BEL.

\Vitnesses:

WILL. W. FLnnDERs, WALTER G. MoELrNc. 

